Palais Galliera explores 19th-century women who wore masculine clothing

The Palais Galliera in Paris will present "Un vestiaire à soi. Féminités dissidentes au XIXe siècle" from September 26, 2026 to February 14, 2027. Curated by Marine Kisiel, the exhibition features over 500 works including garments, accessories, photographs, paintings, drawings, fashion prints, and archives from French and international collections. It examines how women in the 19th century appropriated masculine dress codes to gain freedom in sports, travel, work, and public life. A highlight is the complete wardrobe of painter Rosa Bonheur (1822-1899), never before shown in its entirety, from the Château Rosa Bonheur de Thomery. The exhibition also includes 150 amateur photographs, mostly unpublished, from family albums and private archives depicting queer communities. The title references Virginia Woolf's "A Room of One's Own." Kisiel emphasizes the term "dissident femininities" to avoid anachronism, noting that modern gender and sexuality categories did not exist at the time.